Ronnie Polaneczky

STAFF COLUMNIST

Ronnie Polaneczky, a journalist for 30 years, is a Metro columnist at the Daily News, where she has won numerous journalism awards for listening to the city she loves and telling its stories in ways that get to the heart of who we are. She is the 2015 winner of the Eugene C. Pulliam Journalism Fellowship for her coverage of elderly parents who are still responsible for the care of their intellectually disabled, aging children. You can watch her TEDxPhiladelphia Talk, "The Power of Deliberate Listening," at: https://youtu.be/A343tlP5iUA

It's a shock to the system, isn't it? Like the shock you'd get from washing down a pack of Peanut Butter Kandy Kakes with a bottle of Jolt?

The company 's move to the Navy Yard was supposed to bolster Tasty's bottom line by improving production efficiency. But CEO Charlie Pizzi says that commodity costs - you know, flour and eggs and such - are higher. Plus the company's biggest buyer is in Chapter 11 and not purchasing as many krimpets, cakes and pies as it used to.

Please.

Folks I know say sales are off because Tastykakes just aren't as good as they used to be. I haven't recently purchased anything other than Krimpets (do NOT get between me and that butterscotch icing...), so I'm dying to hear your thoughts about Philly's home-grown junk-food company.

What do you think of Tastykakes these days? The ingredients, the taste, the packaging, the overall quality - anything at all having to do with the quintessential Philly experience of inhaling a locally baked combination of sugar and fatty goodness?

From a customer's point of view, what do you think Tastykake can do to save itself?